TFS: Return To Vulpes
by raccoonqueen
Summary: It's back to the planet Vulpes for the TFS, as they come to mourn the passing of their favorite benefactor. Too bad Charles' long-lost evil twin brother has tagged along to ruin the occasion...
1. Prologue: Sad News & Good News

Prologue: Sad News & Good News

September 2, 3048

_Dearest President Bert Raccoon,_

_I am sorry to say that His Brilliant Majesty of Vulpes, King Faolan, has died peacefully in his sleep yesterday. It's hard to believe that he was only 1,175 years old...the longest any king of the planet has ever lived._

_Not long before he took his final breath, he made sure to name the next successor to his throne upon the event of his death. Evidently he has chosen his son-in-law Derrick Armington; after seeing how good he was to Brandy over the years, he was confident that he will rule this planet as efficiently and wisely as he did in the past._

_I hereby invite you and the rest of the TFS to King Faolan's royal funeral in Nuala the following week. I will most certainly look forward to seeing you once more._

_Your old friend,  
Ardal (King Faolan's loyal servant/bodyguard)_

Bert sat in the Oval Office, staring at the letter Oswald had handed to him. To him, losing a dear friend who had helped his team in the past was a very sad thing, but on the bright side that meant Derrick would soon become the next king of Vulpes, with Brandy as his queen. Plus, he and the members of the TFS were invited to take part in the funeral; as much as he didn't want to upset and excite his colleagues at the same time, he felt it was the right thing to do-to pay their respects to their favorite benefactor.

"Ralph," he said, turning to the vice-president. "Do you think we should go to the royal funeral on Vulpes next week?"

Ralph replied, "I'm not sure. With Vanessa planning a double baby shower for Moselle and Polly to be thrown at her house in Hollywood that same week, scheduling can be a lot more difficult than it is. However, if we can convince her to squeeze both events in..."

"...then she can throw the double baby shower on Vulpes! I'm sure the girls wouldn't mind, do you?"

"I...guess so. By the way, here's another letter, from somebody named...Una Gracepaw?"

Bert brightened up at the name. "Hey! That's the name of the young fox lady Bentley's been telling us about! Let's see what it says..."

_Dear Bentley,_

_It's been many long years since I've last seen you. From the day we first met in the deer fields of Nuala to the day we ran into each other again in New Chichen Itza, my mind has always been on you day and night. Despite all the sorrow concerning our fair king's passing, I highly anticipate seeing you among your comrades; Aunt Enya has been urging me to get married for the fourteenth time this month. She already understood that I've been single for quite some time and I haven't found a really good husband in years. Would you be interested in making me your second wife?_

_Forever yours,  
Una Gracepaw_

The letter made Bert laugh. He shouted, "Come on, Ralph! We gotta get on over to Hollywood! Once I show this letter to Bentley, he'll be literally jumping for joy! I swear, it's going to be one special marriage proposal he'll _never _forget!"


	2. Chapter 1: Long Live The King!

Chapter 1: Long Live The King!

Meanwhile, Moselle was at the Roberts place, talking on the phone with Vanessa concerning the upcoming double baby shower. Now at her ninth month, she was always the hopeful mother-to-be; her dream was that one day the child inside her would grow up to be a great hero like her husband.

"And guess what?" she said. "Dr. Quack told me that I'm going to have a baby boy! Now the only problem I have is figuring out what species he's going to be."

Vanessa replied, "That shouldn't be so hard. Charles is a hybrid, so your kid's going to be either a cat, a dragon, a human, a raccoon, or even a combination of all four."

"Well, for one thing, I can certainly tell I'm carrying a dragon."

"How?"

"Oooh...because of the way he's trying to turn my uterus into a fireplace."

"Ouch. I'll bet that hurt a lot."

"Yeah. But...on the other hand, the ultrasound results proved that I'm actually carrying a raccoon kit. The main reason why I'm telling you he's part-dragon is because I noticed he had wings."

"A raccoon with dragon wings...cool. Maybe then Maurice won't be the only dragon/raccoon hybrid existing on earth. Say, Moselle, do you mind if I put up blue banners saying 'It's a boy!' and 'It's a dragon/raccoon!'?"

Moselle laughed. She answered, "Of course, of course! I wouldn't mind. And Charles wouldn't mind either, if he _was _present...which reminds me. I'm planning to keep this whole thing a big surprise for him, so if you see him do _not _tell him that I'm having a son-I prefer to wait until he gets home. I'm sure I can trust you with the secret."

Vanessa nodded. "You have my word."

"Thanks. I-oh, man, I gotta go. Anara and Daniel are arguing over the TV remote...again. I'd better go and stop them. Catch ya later...and remember..."

"Okay, I won't forget. Goodbye, and good luck!"

As soon as Vanessa hung up, she heard excited cheers coming from the living room. It came from her husband Bentley Raccoon-obviously he had received a telegram from Bert about Una's letter to him. Vanessa asked, "What was all that about, Bentley?"

"It's her!" replied Bentley happily. "Una just wrote to me! And to think I haven't thought about her in a LOOOOONNNNG time! Vanessa...she...she asked me to marry her..."

"Marry you?"

"Yes...in other news, though, we're invited to be present at a royal funeral on Vulpes next week. King Faolan just died."

"Oh, that's so awful. I'm feeling really bad for the subjects who adored him-they must have looked up to him a lot over the years. Remind me to pray for them."

"More than one reason to come back to the planet. It's been only 38 years, Ness...or was it 1,047 years? Because we _did _travel back in time to 2001 so we could get Clark..."

"Well, either way, we'll go ahead and attend the funeral. I guess I may have to throw the double baby shower for both Moselle and Polly at Nuala, rather than here at home."

Meanwhile, Bert went on to tell Derrick the news. He said, "WHAT? I'm...I'm a king. Now this is a shock."

"I know, Derrick," said Brandy. "I'm pretty shocked that I'm going to be a queen, too."

Alex II said, "At least you learned leadership from Bert. He's got over a thousand years of experience, and he can teach you how be a great leader."

"Yes, Derrick," added Bert. "I can train you how to be a great leader. Just take it from me-Bert Raccoon, ace mentor!"

Derrick smiled. "Thanks."

Later that night, Charles was in his home, talking to Bert on his iPhone. While going though his pictures, he came across an old picture and saw that another person who was in the picture with his dead family looked just like him; he wasn't very happy about this discovery. He muttered, "Did I have a twin brother? Why didn't dad tell me about this?"

"Uh, Charles?" asked Bert on the other end. "Is there something wrong?"

"I found a really old picture, Bert. And in that picture was a man who looked exactly like me. Come to think of it, I didn't even know I have a twin brother."

"Whoa...seems like there are far more skeletons in our family's closet, huh? We probably may find out when we get to Vulpes. Besides, we've got a funeral to attend...as well as the double baby shower for Moselle and Polly."

"All right. Maybe I'll find out...soon enough."

As soon as Charles hung up, Moselle came up to him. With a coy smile, she muttered, "Oh, Charles..."

"Hey, Moselle," replied Charles. "Did you get the news of the royal funeral on Vulpes?"

"Yes. But I have something else to tell you."

"What is it?"

Moselle grinned and held up a light-blue teddy bear. "Does _this_ answer your question?"

Charles' red eyes blinked in realization and surprise. Finally, something to help him take his mind off of the mystery of an unnamed identical twin brother-another son in the family.


	3. Chapter 2: Dr Claw

Chapter 2: Dr. Claw

In a Death Spear somewhere in space, a brown-skinned human sat listening to the news. He looked like Charles, with the exception that nobody has ever seen his face but only his metal hand, and he had a pet cat name Meowth. Then one of his agents, a dog named Brain, came up to him.

"Dr. Claw," he said. "The TFS Ship is heading to Vulpes, and there is also a Mixer who has the same eyes as you."

People may suppose that Brain was brainwashed (pardon the pun), but what they did not know is that Brain actually had amnesia. When Dash Roberts a.k.a. Dr. Claw did what the original Dr. Claw couldn't do-kill Inspector Gadget and Penny-he and Brain were fighting each other; Dash kicked Brain so hard he sent him to the ground and made him hit his head. That way, the dog lost his memory and he was now forced to serve Dash until he gets his memory back.

Dr. Claw replied, "So, I do have a twin brother. I never liked him anyway, since he always got success while I was shunned. And now it's time to give the Epsilons a job." Then he picked up the phone to call the space locusts. He continued, "Captain Pathos, I got a job for you and all of your men. Go to Vulpes, wreck the coronation party in Nuala, and send a message to that phony twin brother of mine!"

Meanwhile, on Vulpes, the TFS and their friends and family were helping the Vulpians prepare for the royal funeral/coronation ceremony and party. Bentley went over to the stone cottage, which was the home of Enya Gracepaw and her niece Una. He sighed happily as he began to remember the day he and Una first met...

FLASHBACK

_Bentley got up, his entire face caked with mud and dirt. As soon as he got up, he turned around to see the stag that toppled him. This time, there was a beautiful young woman beside the stag, scolding it in Reynardian (the language of the Vulpians). She looked like all the female foxes in Nuala, and she had the brightest brown eyes and the silkiest blonde hair. She was the most beautiful girl Bentley had ever seen._

_All at once, the young woman noticed Bentley, went over to him, and said, "I'm sorry, sir. Are you all right?"_

_Bentley didn't say a word. She was so lovely, he didn't have anything else to say. At last, he stammered, "I-I-I..."_

_"Oh, dear," muttered the woman pitifully. "That blow must've shocked you so greatly. Here..." She took out a small clay mug, dipped it in the bucket of milk she was carrying, and offered it to him. She continued sweetly, "Drink this. It's pure deer milk."_

_Bentley hesitated, before taking the cup from her, and sipping the milk. It tasted like cow's milk-Grade A, to be exact. He smiled and said, "Hey...this is pretty good. Kinda tastes like milk from cows on Earth. Anyway, thanks." He looked up at her and said, "I've never seen you in this village before. Are you new here?"_

_The woman replied, "Oh, no, I was born here. I spent all my life in this village."_

_"Then who are you?"_

_The woman looked at Bentley for a moment, and answered, "My name is Una...Una Gracepaw."_

_Bentley replied politely, "Sweet name. I'm Bentley Raccoon, from Earth."_

_"Ah, Bentley," said Una. "It isn't a Celtic name, but I don't mind it at all. What are you doing here in these parts?"_

_"Well, I'm..." He looked back at the corn field. The women were still working to harvest the crops. Then he continued, "I'm going to go over to that field over there to get some corn. I haven't eaten in a long while."_

_"Oh, no, you can't," replied Una, shaking her head. "That's for the wedding feast. It will be due to start at any time now, and if you try to eat just one, there'll never be enough for everybody."_

_Bentley scoffed and said, "Nonsense! There is plenty of corn for the whole village! Don't you see the size of that field?"_

_Una thought for a moment, before saying, "Will you come with me, please? I'll get you something else to eat for a change."_

END OF FLASHBACK

"Well, Bentley, this is it," he murmurred to himself, staring at the small light-blue velvet box in his paw. "The moment you've been waiting for all these years. Now the first thing you have to do is tell Una that you accept her proposal, and then ask her if she'd like to accept yours. After that, we'll have the grandest wedding anybody has ever seen! I can't wait..." He put the box back into his pocket, before knocking on the door.

"Ah, young Bentley," said Enya, answering the door. "It's nice to be able to see you again. What brings you here on this day of days?"

Bentley replied, "I'm looking for Una. Is she here with you?"

"Oh, no, I'm afraid not. She's out teaching Mr. and Mrs. Cake how to make Vulpian-style corn pudding. And I suppose you have been reading her letter, asking you to marry her."

"Yes, and I'd like her to do the same for me."

He took the small box back out and showed her a gold ring with emeralds and sapphires. Enya took one look at it and shook her head. She muttered, "You're going to propose to my dear niece with _that _thing? Surely you do not know the basics of traditional Vulpian courtship rituals."

Bentley frowned. "Then...what do I have to do?"

"In order to automatically become Una's husband, you have to prove your worth in a contest of strength, courage, wit, and skill." Pointing to a row of male foxes behind Bentley, she continued, "Besides, she has other suitors in the village who are more than willing to fight for her paw in marriage."

He turned around to see the male foxes, some of them strong and buff, glaring at him and cracking their knuckles. Bentley gulped fearfully; perhaps proposing to Una wasn't going to be as easy as he thought it would be.


	4. Chapter 3: The Epsilons Attack

Chapter 3: The Epsilons Attack

Alex II saw this and decided that the only way to help Bentley win Una's paw in marriage is if he trained him. He went over to him and said, "Bentley, I think you're going to need my help in training against those guys for her hand in marriage. So, will you accept my training program? This way you can win without strength but only the mind, because kung fu and karate is the only way to go."

"Well," replied Bentley. "I did fight both in the Agent R movie series and in real life. But I'll be happy to accept your training program, Alex II. Thanks a lot-I hope this will work."

To Enya, Alex II asked, "Excuse me, ma'am, but when does this 'Strength, Courage, Wit, and Skill' contest happen?"

Enya replied, "Actually, young man, it's a multi-sport contest that's all part of this year's fall festival-'The Turning of the Leaves'. Wrestling, wood chopping, archery, pig wrangling, stone tossing, and deer racing; these sports help determine who's the strongest, smartest, and quickest man on the planet."

Bentley turned to Alex II and said, "And for that, I'm gonna need a LOT of your training."

"Not to mention that the goal this time is Una; whoever wins in all six competitions gets to have her. But remember, Alex II-the contest begins in about four days after the funeral and your nephew's coronation, so you must get Bentley ready until then. I wish you the best of luck."

Alex II nodded, before taking Bentley to the TFS Training Room in the ship.

Outside of Nuala, the Epsilons arrived near the gates. Pathos said, "Okay, men. Dr. Claw ordered us just to mess up the coronation and send them a message; no killing is allowed. If I see anyone kill a Vulpian or a TFS member, they will answer to me and Dr. Claw! Do I make myself clear?"

"YES, SIR!" the Epsilons shouted.

"Good. Now move out."

Meanwhile, the royal funeral began near the Pawstone River. Ardal informed the TFS that it is an ancient and valued tradition for a Vulpian-regardless of sex, age, or class-to be sent away in the sacred river to what they call "the Great Beyond". The villagers and castle servants watched solemnly as he handed Bert a clay urn filled with the ashes of King Faolan; the raccoon then walked towards the river with it. Closing his eyes with a somber frown, he murmurred the phrase Ardal had taught him to say: "From Baron Reynard thou came and to him thou shalt return...thus I will release thee from the safety of thy urn..."

He opened its lid and proceeded to pour its dusty contents into the river; when the ashes touched the water and floated away along with it, there wasn't a dry eye in the valley. Ardal exclaimed, "Another king has gone, another king has arisen. Long live the new king! Long live King Derrick!"

"Huzzah! Huzzah!" the villagers cheered.

Suddenly, everything came to a halt when they heard a loud buzzing noise echoing through the air. Bright Eyes asked, "You guys hear something?"

Bert looked towards the sky. In the distance, he spotted the source of the buzzing...the whole Epsilon army. He growled, "No...not those insect losers again! Better gear up, team-looks like we got ourselves a serious battle coming on!"

Sensing an emergency, Ardal shouted at the villagers in Reynardian, ordering them to get back to Nuala immediately and close up their shops and cottages. To Derrick and Brandy, he said, "As for the two of you, go inside the castle and do not come out until the Epsilons are gone."

"But I'm still a member of the TFS," replied Derrick. "Shouldn't I just help them fight them?"

"Your safety and that of your beloved's is far more important, Your Majesty. We cannot risk losing a new king too early, so please...trust me on this."

Derrick stared at Ardal for a long time. Finally, he nodded, and turned to Brandy. He said, "We must do as he says. But I'll be there in case things go wrong." They followed him back to Nuala, while the rest of the TFS prepared themselves for a battle with the Epsilons.


	5. Chapter 4: An Unpleasant Reunion

Chapter 4: An Unpleasant Reunion

"It's those guys again," muttered Charles. "And man, they don't want to quit."

Bert said, "I thought they were going to leave Vulpes alone, but now I think there's someone pulling there strings and making them attack."

They began to fight the Epsilons. One of the group, Princess Tikal, fell as an Epsilon was going to attack her as she screamed. Then a blue and yellow hedgehog came and buzzsawed the Epsilon in the back, sending him to the ground. As he helped Tikal back up, he asked, "Are you okay?"

Tikal blinked; she knew she'd recognize that voice from somewhere. She whispered, "Alexander Hedgehog, is that you?"

"Yes, it's me."

"Twin cousin?" asked Sonic, stunned. "I thought you were gone for good!"

"I can tell you later, but right now let's send these Epsilons back were they came from!"

With that, he ran as the fight song from Fooly Cooly began to play. Alex H did a hard kick, then a roundhouse kick to the Epsilon's head as he sent him hard to the ground. Then he moved Tikal out of the way as he smiled at her and threw up a yellow Chaos Emerald. He shouted loudly and it started to glow with yellow energy.

"CHAOS BUZZSAW ATTACK!"

He sent his attack towards four Epsilons and sent them on the ground, but they are hurt. Captain Pathos barked, "STOP THE ATTACK NOW!" All at once, the Epsilons stopped fighting and watched as he walked up to the TFS and continued, "Our boss wants me give you this message. " Then he threw the Holo-Telegram down ont the ground, before they flew away.

When Charles began to pick it up, it opened to reveal Dr. Claw; they couldn't see his face, only his metal hand. He said, "Hello, Bert and Charles. Did you miss me?"

"DR. CLAW!" the cops shouted.

Bert said, "But how? We thought you were dead."

"No! I'm alive. I've just killed Inspector Gadget and his niece Penny, but I left their dog Brain alive and he's with me. No brainwashing was involved this time; he just lost his memory, so he won't remember you, but he's working for me now. And I'm giving you this because I'm looking forward to meeting you again!"

Charles retorted, "You probably want to fight me and my team because you're jealous of my success."

"Look who's talking, Mr. Five-Wives! I have had quite enough with having so much bad luck in my lifetime. You've got a team who supports you, a family who loves you, and a set of crime-fighting skills. And what do _I _have? NOTHING! No friends, no wives, no family, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! I have every single right to take it out on you for possessing everything that I didn't get to have growing up!"

Then Bentley came forward. He said, "If you want to fight us, then how would you like to particpate in the Emerwill?"

The cops gasped. Dr. Claw murmurred, "I'll bite. Tell me about this 'Emerwill'."

"Emerwill," explained Bentley. "Is a word derived from the Vulpian phrase, '_Minat e emerwill_', which means 'Prove your worth'-it perfectly describes the multi-sport contest that takes place during the Turning of the Leaves festival. There are six competitions included in the Emerwill, all of them requiring a great amount of strength, courage, wit, and skill: wrestling, wood chopping, archery, pig wrangling, stone tossing, and deer racing."

"Humph, no weapons?"

Bentley shook his head. "No technological weapons whatsoever; that would be considered cheating. You'll have to take part in it the old-fashioned way."

"...fine. It's a deal. But I won't be participating in it, anyway; instead I'll send in Brain as a new contestant. Here's how it'll go down-if you win, I'll surrender. But if _he _wins...you will be forced to give up your home base in Neo-Detroit and let me run it!"

Charles furrowed his brow and muttered, "You're on." When the Holo-Telegram stopped playing, he turned to Bentley and continued, "As a matter of fact, there will be three more contestants in the Emerwill-myself, Bert Jr., and Alex Hedgehog."

Watching the following events, Ardal saw this as a sign to begin the contest. He took out his moose bone trumpet and began blowing loudly, before proclaiming, "Citizens of Nuala! Gather around in the main square, for the Emerwill multi-sport contest is about to begin!"

"I'll send Moselle and Polly to Aunt Enya's," said Vanessa, as she escorted said ladies away. "I can throw the double baby shower over there. And, knowing that they'll be due to give birth any time soon, it's pretty much convinient."

Tikal added, "And I'll help."

Moselle and Polly waved to their husbands, shouting, "Good luck, boys!'

Bert Jr., Charles, and Alex H nodded, before following Bentley and the others to the main square of the village. The first competition coming up-wrestling.


	6. Chapter 5: The Emerwill

Chapter 5: The Emerwill

Everyone gathered about in the main square, as Ardal began to announce the rules of the first competition. He said, "Due to a great number of males competing for Una's paw in marriage, it will be an elimination match. So wrestling will be the first; the person who survives the first competition will advance to the woodchopping event, then he'll move on to archery, pig wrangling, stone tossing and lastly, deer racing. For that reason, I'm going to need 64 to advance to the next round. Here are the following opponents for the wrestling competition..."

**MATCHES**  
Brain (IG) Vs. Mark Chambers  
Charles Roberts Vs. William Sanders  
Bentley Vs. Tim Newt  
Alex H Vs. Jackson Madison  
Bert Jr. Vs. THE VWF (Vulpes Wrestling Frederation) Champion Ken "Nightmare" Williams

The first match started, and two of the competitors stood in the mud-filled ring. Una noted, "The only son of a metalsmith, Mark has been known to be the biggest and strongest man in the village. They call him 'The Undefeatable One' because of his many wins in the past Emerwill contests."

"That's a no-brainer," replied Bert Jr. "I know Brain going to lose, since Mark is stronger than him. Did you notice the size comparision between those two?"

Charles added, "I don't know. Dr. Claw said that Brain did lose his memory, and I think something is not going to be right."

The villagers watched as the fighters got into position. Ardal shouted, "Fighters, get ready...and..._shalut_!" (Translation: "Go!")

At the sound of the moosebone horn, Mark began charging towards Brain with a fierce growl. The dog had his eyes closed, then he smirked as he flipped the fox over and put him in a Arm Bar Submission hold. Mark tried to get out, but the pressure Brain had was too much, so he tapped out, much to the spectators' shock.

"Mark is unable to fight," declared Ardal. "The winner of the first match is Brain!"

Una went over to the extremely tired and exhausted Mark, threw a mooseskin blanket over him, and gently led him away to the Loser's Circle. She whispered in Reynardian, "_Ciean ji ne karlu, te luba_." (Translation: "You've done your best, my beloved.")

"I don't believe it!" said Bert. "How can Brain make this big guy tap out? It's impossible!"

The other matches began, and Charles, Bert Jr., Alex H, and Bentley emerged as the winners. Next came the woodchopping event, and Ardal began explaining the rules of the game. He said, "Sitting before you are the trees that have been cut down and brought to you from a nearby forest. The objective of the game is to chop the trees into as many logs as you can; the one with the most logs in a pile will be declared the winner and will move on to the archery competition, while the one with the lowest number of logs...will be kicked out."

_"If I win this match and all the other matches after that," _thought Bentley, feeling determined. _"I might get to marry Una and save our home base at the same time. Something about the way Brain won the first competition seems very suspicious, and I'm going to find out exactly what it is, one way or another..."_


	7. Chapter 6: Bentley's Discovery

Chapter 6: Bentley's Discovery

When the moosebone horn was blown again, Brain quickly chopped the tree, as his pile went into 156 logs. Charles had 143, Bentley had 161, Bert Jr. had 141, and the rest had 140-41.

"It is finished!" said Ardal. "So far, only 32 men made it, and 32 of them are promptly eliminated from the contest. The ones who made it to the next round are Bentley, Brain, Charles, Bert Jr., and the rest of the men who have produced a large number of logs. Let us take a break for now; tomorow will be the archery and pig wrangling event, so you must have dinner and rest for breakfast until then."

Bentley said, "Right now, I think I'm going to spy on Brain and see how he got that strong."

Charles nodded. "Let's see what Dr. Claw's feeding Brain."

In the King's Castle, Derrick and Brandy were in their room while their kids played in Brandy's old nursery. Derrick said, "I've been thinking about this, Brandy. If we become king and queen for the rest of the years, then I don't know if we have to quit the TFS. But I'm going to talk to Bert and see what he has to say about this."

"Why not ask him about it?" suggested Brandy. "It's up to him whether he wants to let you go or not."

Derrick thought about it, before muttering, "I'll be right back." Then he went to find Bert. Finding him sitting outside and watching a herd of deer grazing in the field, he said, "Hey, Bert..."

"Oh, Derrick, good to see ya," replied Bert with a smile. "How are you enjoying life in the castle?"

"Can I talk to you for a minute? It's something I need get off of my chest."

"Sure thing, pal. What is it?"

"Well, I was thinking...if Brandy and I do decide to stay on Vulpes and become king and queen, would it be neccessary for us to quit the TFS? As much as we want to stay with you guys...I just don't think the Vulpians might be happy without a ruler to keep things in order."

"...you know, our policy states that you don't have to leave our group in order to assume political duties. Why do you think I became president, yet I can still fight alongside my teammates? And even though one of Ralph's sons is the new king of Mars, he promised he'd always come to our aid whenever we're in trouble."

Derrick looked up at him. "Does that mean we can go on ahead and be the rulers of Vulpes?"

"And still be part of our group," answered Bert with a nod. "That's what teamwork is for."

Derrick smiled and shook hands with Bert. He said, "Thanks. Your advice is enough to make us happy."

Meanwhile, Bentley, Charles, Bert Jr., and Alex H were spying on Brain; they became astonished to discover that he had been taking steroid pills! Bentley said, "So, _this _is how he beat the other boys in the wrestling and woodcutting competitions!"

"I'm not sure if that can be allowed in the contest," replied Bert Jr. "Back on earth, taking steroids is considered strictly illegal in most competitions, especially the Olympics."

"Right. And now that we've discovered his secret, I know exactly what we can do to beat him. Huddle up around me, fellas, here's what I have in mind for our plan..."

They gathered around in a huddle to listen to Bentley's secret plan. After that, they split up, and prepared for tomorrow's archery competition.


	8. Chapter 7: Outfoxed

Chapter 7: Outfoxed

Having a suspiscion about being watched, Brain called Dr. Claw in his room. He said, "Master, I was being spied on while taking steroid pills, and I figure they will try to exploit me so you can lose the contest."

"Don't take steroids for the archery contest," replied Dr. Claw. "I've been training you how to shoot a bow and arrow, so remember my teaching. As for Charles, Bentley, Bert Jr. and Alex H, if they spy on you, I will send some of my men as your guards and make sure they keep intruders out."

"Yes, sir."

Then four of Dr. Claw's henchmen, a dragon, a raccoon, a green hedgehog, and a red raccoon was there to guard Brain.

Later at dinner time, Derrick and Brandy were happy about what Bert had told Derrick, and they decided to hold a feast to celebrate. They invited the TFS and their families to come eat with them at the castle; Bert, Lisa, Blaze, Donna Belle, and his other wives were honored to sit next to King Derrick and Queen Brandy at the table. Even Vanessa thought it was a great idea to throw the double baby shower there.

The four henchmen were sitting at Brain's table, making sure he wasn't spied on and not be harmed. Charles asked, "Since when did Brain needed guards or henchmen to watch him?"

"I think he knew what we're up to," replied Alex H.

"How?"

"He may have either overheard us, or he must have a third eye in the back of his head. No matter what we do to expose his entire plan to cheat in front of everyone on Vulpes, he always finds a way to make it even harder for us to do so."

Rolling up his sleeves, Bert Jr. muttered angrily, "So he's thinks this is all a game within a game, huh? Let me take on those guards of his-they'll be sorry they ever messed with me!"

Bert Jr. was about to march straight towards the guards, but Bentley stopped him. He said, "Hold on, Bert Jr., I think there's a better way to handle the situation. If he can outsmart us, we'll outsmart him back; all we have to do is distract the guards and convince them to leave Brain."

"And how are we going to do that?"

Bentley looked around, before spotting Moselle opening gifts from the female guests. "I have an idea..." He leaned in and whispered into his nephew's bent ear; Bert Jr. nodded, before going on his way towards the guards. When he tapped on the dragon's shoulder, he turned around to face him.

"What do _you _want, punk?" retorted the dragon.

Bert Jr. replied, "Pardon the interruption, guys, but do you know my sister Moselle?"

"Who? One of the freak's wives?"

He cringed, trying hard not to fume against the insult that was aimed at his brother-in-law. He went on, "I was wondering if you have a soft spot for pregnant women. My sister's pregnant, you know, and so is Polly."

"Well, duh!" answered the red raccoon. "Of course, we do. We're not as tough and heartless as you think. You're too dumb to notice that?"

Now feeling that he was insulted himself, Bert Jr. got ready to punch the raccoon in the face, but part of his mind told him to resist the urge. _Remember your uncle's plan, Bert Jr. It's for your own good..._

"...anyway, they're the kind of women who may require a bit of your assistance. The thing is, they'll be due to give birth any day now, so you could just...try and help them out until the day comes, whenever that will be."

The green hedgehog insisted, "But we were told to protect Brain from intruders."

"I'll take over your duties for a while. You go help the girls. Think we've got a deal?"

"Deal."

The four henchmen left the table, while Bert Jr. went to sit next to Brain. Watching the henchmen walk away from him, Brain demanded, "Hey! Where do you think you're going? Come back here and guard me!"

"Sorry," replied Bert Jr. "They went to assist the ladies over there. I'm here to protect you until they return."

"Oh, really? You'd protect me?"

Bert Jr. nodded. "Yep, I'm your new bodyguard. 24 hours a day, seven days a week-that's all I'll need."

"...are you or your chums planning on spying on me again?"

"Oh, no! No, nothing of the sort. We just wanted to wish you good luck on the archery competition tomorrow."

While Bert Jr. and Brain talked, Alex H quickly sped over and, very carefully, secretly added a drop of the truth serum into Brain's cup, before heading back to Charles and Bentley. Bentley asked, "Did you put the truth serum into his drink?"

"I sure did," replied Alex H. "Knowing that he'll be most likely to lie about his involvement in the pre-Emerwill training, once he drinks it he'll be forced to tell the truth."

"Good thinking."

Unfortunately, Brain was much too smart to never take notice of their plan. He took the cup and switched it with Bert Jr.'s. Then he said, "Thanks for the motivation, pal. Now, if you'll excuse me, I gotta take my time to think about what we're going to do tomorrow..."

Bert Jr. nodded, before taking what he thought was his cup of white grape wine and walked back to the table. He asked, "Did you guys do it?"

Charles, Bentley, and Alex H nodded. Charles replied, "Alex H put the truth serum into his wine. It won't be long before he begins revealing his secret in front of everyone in the dining room."

They watched as Brain began to drink from his cup; at the same time, Bert Jr. drank from his own cup. They waited for a moment, but nothing happened.

"What happened?" asked Bentley, puzzled. "He didn't say anything."

Bert Jr. shrugged. "Maybe the truth serum failed after all." Suddenly, he began to blurt out, "I STOLE JAMES' BIOLOGY BOOKS FROM HIS LAB TWO YEARS AGO!"

Everyone gasped at hearing that. Moselle asked, "Bert Jr., is there something wrong?"

"I don't know, but all of a sudden I feel-I WRECKED MY CAR INTO CYRUS AND POWERPAWS' HOUSE IN HOLLYWOOD! AND I WAS THE ONE WHO PUKED ON FIFI'S PRIZE-WINNING PETUNIAS IN HER GARDEN!"

"_Sacre bleu!_" gasped Fifi in shock. Alex II stood up with a start and said, "That's quite enough! I'm not sure what's gotten into you recently, but this has got to stop before you'll ruin anything else!"

"I'm sorry, Alex II. It's just that I-AND I BROKE MAGGIE'S FAVORITE PEN AND SPILLED OUT ALL THE INK!"

"Bert Jr.!" Maggie cried out, upset. Bentley looked over and saw that Brain was trying to hide an amused snicker. He has had enough of the dog's trickery, so he bolted up onto the table and shouted to all the guests in the room.

He declared, "Ladies and gentlemen, I have an important announcement concerning our opponent, Brain. My nephew and my friends have been keeping tabs on that guy and we've discovered the reason behind his past two successes in the wrestling and woodcutting matches. And now, we're about to tell you what he's _really _up to. Brain has been taking..."

Brain quickly grabbed a blueberry pie and threw it at Bentley, interrupting his speech. He yelled, "FOOD FIIIIIIIIIGHT!"

All at once, everybody in the room began tossing food and drinks at each other. Brain then turned to the four henchmen who were with Moselle and Polly, and shouted, "You! Come with me, before anyone follows us!" The henchmen nodded and followed Brain to his cottage.

"So they _are _on to me!" he continued angrily. "Those idiots just don't know when to give up, do they? Well, this is gonna be the last time they'll get to pull the wool over my eyes. The archery competition's coming up tomorrow-and since I know that they will try to get back at me, we'll get back at them first! And I know exactly how to do it. Go get me the teams' bows and arrows; I'd like to see them try to mess up my goal this time..."

Meanwhile, in Aunt Enya's cottage, Vanessa was upset that the double baby shower was ruined due to the food fight. She grumbled, "All my careful planning and arranging...all my hopes to make both girls happy...TOTALLY WASTED!"

"Don't feel too bad, Vanessa," replied Polly, reading a book. "At least we still had a good time."

Moselle added, "Besides, I haven't had this much fun in my life. The four strong men I had met were so nice to me."

"And the baby clothes had food stains all over them! There's no way I'll ever get them out! Forget it...the whole thing was a mess before it even started. I guess I might have to start the party over from the very beginning when it's safe."

Just then, Moselle put a paw over her belly and cringed. She muttered, "Speaking of beginnings..."

"What's that, my dear?" asked Enya, coming over to her. "Is the baby coming?"

"Feels just like it...I think it's a contraction coming on...ooh..."

"Hold it! We'll prepare everything in an instant. Una! Moselle's ready! Get some blankets and the hot water!"

"I'll be right there!" Una called out.

Enya turned to Vanessa and continued, "As for you, go get her husband!"

Vanessa nodded and headed out of the door. Una quickly began to gather the items needed for the birth, and set them near Moselle. But when they were getting themselves ready, Moselle said, "...well, what do you know? It was only a false alarm."

Enya cursed in Reynardian under her breath. Then she murmurred, "Ach...and just when I thought it was going to be here. Una, dear, go after Vanessa and tell her not to get Charles. It's only a false alarm; the baby's not coming yet."

"All right, auntie."

In his cottage in the village, Bentley slept peacefully. With the archery comeptition starting first thing in the morning, he and his pals were more than determined to bring Brain down and put a stop to Dr. Claw's plan. But they would be in for the biggest shock of their lives when they discover what their opponent had done to their bows and arrows...


	9. Chapter 8: A Cheater Exposed

Chapter 8: A Cheater Exposed

In the morning, as the parents were eating breakfast and getting ready for their events, Derrick and Brandy's son Michael was playing when he heard some noises; he went to hide, then he saw Brain and his guards messing up Charles, Bentley, Bert Jr., and Alex H's bows even arrows. Tossing the broken weapons onto the ground, Brain said with a smirk, "Let see if they can shoot now!"

As soon as they left, Michael went to tell his dad and warn him. He said, "Dad, Brian and his goons just messed up Bentley, Bert Jr. Charles, and Alex H's bows and arrows. I saw them!"

"Bentley was right about Brain," muttered Derrick. "I think I need to warn them and give them my other arrows."

He went to Bert's guest room in the other side of the castle. Bert asked, "What's wrong?"

"Bert, I need to warn you now," replied Derrick.

"What is it?"

"Your brother-in-law's right-Brain is up to somehting. I think he wants to win this contest for Dr. Claw. My son saw them break the team's bows and arrows, so I need you to take these bows and arrows to them. Also, I told Ardal about this, and he knows."

"Okay. But for now, we have a huge problem-Bert Jr. still wouldn't stop telling the truth! We'd better get the truth serum out of his system before Maggie and Fifi pulverize him! Lucky thing Alex II was holding Fifi back, and Lisa was holding Maggie back."

"That's good."

In another room was a fight getting out of control; Fifi and Maggie were attempting to pound Bert Jr., with Alex II and Lisa holding them back. Bert Jr. whined, "Maggie! Fifi! Can't we talk about this? I really didn't mean to-I SPILLED PUNCH ON PRINCESS SALLY'S FAVORITE EVENING GOWN!"

"Vous are gonna pay for ruining moi garden!" growled Fifi.

Maggie retorted, "Not until he apologizes for breaking my pen!"

Bert and Derrick ran into the room, where James was with the three. Holding up a syringe, he said, "Dad, I've finally prepared the Flusher, a liquid that can help override various kinds of serums, especially truth serums. Permission to inject?"

"Permission granted," replied Bert with a nod. "Now hurry!"

James nodded and quickly lunged forward to stick the needle into Bert Jr.'s neck, and injected the serum into his bloodstream. This calmed the raccoon down and he sat down on the chair to relax. Fifi muttered impatiently, "Well?"

"Whew," murmurred Bert Jr. "That was close...first of all, I want to say I'm sorry that I did all of those things. Especially to you, Maggie."

Maggie asked, "So it was the truth serum that made you say all that?"

James nodded. "In fact, he accidentally ingested it, after Brain switched the cups of wine. Another sign that an attempt to expose his secrets has backfired."

Bert Jr. began rolling up his sleeves. He snarled, "If he thinks he's gonna fool me again, he'll have to deal with these two fists!"

The following morning, the villagers gathered at the field for the archery competition. After all the participants had been lined up, Ardal decided to make an announcement. He said, "Citizens of Nuala, before we begin this contest, I must give you this important announcement. It has come to my attention that a certain someone, among the other male particpants, is suspected of the most heinous crime in the sports world-cheating."

The villagers gasped in shock. Bert whispered to Alex II, "This oughta be good..."

"According to His Eternal Majesty's young son Prince Michael," Ardal went on. "There have been reports of a dog and four large men breaking the bows and arrows of the following four contestants-Bert Raccoon Jr., Bentley Raccoon, Charles Roberts, and Alexander Hedgehog. The dog in question is none other than Brain, a contestant sent in by his master Dr. Claw; he is also the one responsible for starting the food fight that spiraled out of control during the royal banquet/double baby shower, and by causing Bert Jr. to drink the white grape wine tainted with a truth serum. And for those atrocities, he shall be permanently banned from taking part in the last few competitions of the Emerwill."

At hearing this, Brain growled and glared at Bert Jr., Bentley, Charles, and Alex H. He muttered, through clinched teeth, "You nitwits haven't seen the last of me yet..." And with that, he left.

Ardal said, "Now with that problem solved, we must carry on. In this contest, your goal is to fire arrows at pre-determined targets in the field; the number of points you receive depend on how close to the bullseye you are. The ones with the most points they've accumulated will get to move on to the next competition. Men, prepare your bows and arrows! Ready...set..._shalut_!" (Translation: "Go!")


	10. Chapter 9: A Decent Proposal

Chapter 9: A Decent Proposal

Brain was right-they haven't seen the last of him. A blast hit the targets, as Dr. Claw showed up with Brain, the Epsilons, and his henchmen the mad agents; he was wearing a mask. He snarled, "Since we can't do it the easy way, we're going to do it the hard way-BY FORCE!"

"You've interrupted the contest," gasped Ardal. "You are truly evil."

"You'd better defend yourselves, because WE ARE GOING TO DESTROY YOU ALL!"

Then he took his mask off and revealed himself to be Dash Roberts. After that, he powered up into a Super Shin Human 12. He continuned, "Brother, you are dead! Remember the Shin Humans? Because they are the same as Super Sayians, and now I'm one of them. ATTACK NOW!"

They began to fight. SSH12 Dash punched Charles hard and sent him into the tree, through the house and into the ground. Then he remembered that now as he tried to power up and went SSH 12. After that, both Charles and Dash disappeared and began to fight fast.

Meanwhile, Brian was fighting Bert Jr. with his sword. He said, "So, you want to tear me up with your bare paws? I'd like to see you try that!" Then he kicked Bert Jr. hard while punching him in the face. "GET UP!"

Bert Jr. punched back as he and Brain kept fighting each other. The Epsilons and MAD agents attacked the Vulpians and the TFS, while the Mane Six fought the Mad Agents and Episilons with Trixie's help.

The entire village turned into a battlefield. Houses were destroyed, forests were wrecked, and everything around them was covered with blood and fur. And it would have caused any further damage to the planet itself if it wasn't for a mysterious force that mentally forced Dash, Brain, the Epsilons, and the MAD agents to leave Vulpes.

_Enemies of my raccoon children and their allies! Leave the planet at once, or you shall face my wrath!_

"Yeah, right," scoffed Dash. "And what if we don't?"

As if to answer that question, a ferocious hurricane came blowing in, with angry raccoon chattering echoing in the air. This convinced the Epsilons and the MAD agents that they were dealing with an enraged guardian spirit who was not happy with how they were treating the TFS, and they chickened out. Dash shouted, "Hey! Where do you think you're going?"

"Forget it, boss!" answered Captain Pathos. "You can fight those cops by yourself! WE QUIT!"

With that, the Epsilons and the MAD agents fled. Dash shook his fist at the TFS, roaring, "DON'T THINK THIS IS OVER YET, FOOLS! I'LL GET BACK AT YOU SOMEHOW!" He jumped on the helicopter Brain was operating, and they left.

"That was close," muttered Alex H, while Tikal nursed his wounds. "Another minute, and I could've been dead! I wonder what convinced them to stop fighting us and leave us alone."

Bert Jr. stood still in the air, feeling the soft breeze left over from the hurricane that scared away their opponents. He whispered, "Procyon..."

"Say what now?" asked Applejack.

"Procyon...the ancient guardian spirit of my family...the protector of all raccoons. I'll tell you about him later, but first...we have a serious emergency to deal with. Look at this."

The TFS looked around and saw that the village of Nuala had been destroyed due to the battle. Alex II said, "We're sorry about your village, Ardal."

"Oh, it's all right," replied Ardal. "We're used to it. Our village had been destroyed and repaired numerous times in the past; that doesn't stop us from living our everyday lives while everything around here gets fixed. I'll be sure to inform King Derrick about this-after all, he knows exactly what to do." To the villagers, he continued, "And I'm sorry to say that due to the battle that has cost us a great number of lives, the pig wrangling, stone tossing, and deer racing events will have to be cancelled."

"What?" said Bentley, shocked. "B-B-But...what about Una? Do I still get to marry her?"

"The Emerwill may have to be held next year when all is safe, Bentley. However, since you have proved yourself to be a gentleman of your caliber, whose determination to win the hand of his beloved hasn't been fazed by any failures or shortcomings during the competition...then of course, you can."

Bentley cheered; he finally won! Una ran over to hug him. She whispered, "Oh, Bentley...I knew you could do it! I knew you could win this contest."

"It didn't come easily at first," replied Bentley. "But hey, I'm number one. And now, here's _your _prize for winning my heart as well..." He got down on one knee and opened up the little light-blue velvet box to show her a 14-carat emerald engagement ring. "Ever since we met all those years ago, I never ceased thinking about you, even during my adventures with my team. Now here I stand, awaiting your answer to this question...Una Kara Gracepaw, will you marry me?"

The villagers murmurred "aww" at that sight. Seeing Bentley with the engagement ring instantly brought tears to her eyes; she bent down to his level and took his paws into hers. With a sweet and tearful smile, Una muttered, "_Ciean madi ji ne karlu, te luba. Yurvill, ta avidi fai cira._" (Translation: "You've _really _done your best, my beloved. Therefore, I accept this proposal.")

Bentley smiled and put the ring on her finger, replying, "_Ro_." (Translation: "Obliged.")

As the two sealed the engagement with a kiss, the villagers and the TFS cheered. Ardal exclaimed, "Villagers of Nuala, may I present to you the newlyweds-to-be, Bentley Raccoon and Una Gracepaw. Their wedding shall begin immediately..."

"Not right now!"

They were startled by Vanessa's panicked voice, as she ran towards the TFS. She continued frantically, "We've got seriously bad news, guys. It's about Moselle and Polly."

"What happened to them?" asked Fluttershy.

"They've finally gone into labor...and it's not a false alarm this time!"

Bert Jr. and Charles toughened up at this news. Charles said, "We'll be there." And they followed Vanessa. Bentley turned to Una and asked, "Aren't you going, too? You're Aunt Enya's midwife-in-training, as well as her niece."

Una nodded. As she and Bentley headed towards her aunt's stone cottage, she replied, "I'll do my very best to help my aunt bring the ladies' children into the world!"

Meanwhile, up in space, Dash watched as his henchmen finished building a large Doomsday Bomb, capable of attaching itself to the surface of the planet and destroy most of it. Brain said, "The construction on the Doomsday Bomb is complete, boss. We'll set it to go off at precisely five hours and 60 minutes; once the time is up, Vulpes will be gone and so will be those cops!"

"Excellent!" replied Dash. "Like I said, I will find a way to get back at them." He laughed evilly, as the Doomsday Bomb was released from the ship and sent hurtling towards the planet.


	11. Chapter 10: Doomsday Bomb

Chapter 10: Doomsday Bomb

When the Doomday Bomb was headed towards Vulpes, one of them saw it and went to warn the TFS and the others. A Vulpian guard shouted, "There's a big black ball headed towards us!"

They went outside to see this, as Bert took out the ScreenScope to figure out to real identity of the black ball. He said, "It's a Doomsday Bomb. Dash must have sent us for us."

"Great, my brother wants us dead," said Charles. "I'm going to beat him once and for all. Bert Jr., Bentley, you two need to bring Brain back to us; I think there is a way to get him back to normal."

Bert Jr. replied with a nod, "Right."

"And Bert, if you try to decativate the bomb and you can't, then get them off of this planet."

"I agree."

King Derrick said, "If any one of us can't decatvate the bomb, we'll have to find a new planet to live on."

Charles went over and hugged Moselle. He whispered, "I will be back to see our son if we make it out alive, love."

"Okay, Charles," replied Moselle, reaching out to caress his face with her paw. "I'll be waiting for you..."

Bert Jr. said, "Uncle Bentley, you, Vanessa, and Una stay here with Aunt Enya and look after our wives. Will you do that for us?"

Bentley nodded. "We will."

Alex III, Razor III, Andrew, Bert Jr., Rocky, Sidney, James, Twilight, Trixie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Derpy Hooves went with Charles to the TFS ship while the others (including President Raccoon) stayed behind. Rocky said, "All right, guys. Let's use our Elements of Unity and Harmony to strengthen our ship-that way it'll form a shield to protect us."

They used their Elements of Courage, Respect, Faith, Wisdom, Forgiveness, Responsibility, Perseverance, Honesty, Loyalty, Laughter, Generosity, Kindness, and Magic to power up the ship. Then they blasted off to Dash's ship for the final battle.

Back in the cottage, Bentley, Vanessa, Una, and Enya were looking after Moselle and Polly. Enya said, "Moselle's contractions are now confirmed to be at least a few minutes apart, so from the looks of it she will be the first one to give birth."

"Shall I fetch the blankets and hot water now?" asked Una.

"Go."

Una nodded and went to the next room. Moselle gritted her teeth in pain, as another hard contraction came and went. Vanessa reassured her, "Hang in there, Moselle. We know your kid's coming, but it won't be for a while. You'll know when it's time to push when..."

"BUT I _WANT _TO PUSH!" roared Moselle angrily, grabbing Bentley's paw and squeezing it hard. "I WANT THIS BRAT OUT OF ME RIGHT NOW! I swear, once Charles gets back I'll tell him...not to do this...to me...AGAIN!"

"For the last time, relax! Please!"

Bentley cringed in pain at the pressure his niece's paw had on his. But when he turned to see Polly in trouble, he knew he decided to help out as well. He said, "Aunt Enya? Remember when you asked me if I'm interested in becoming your apprentice?"

"Of course, Bentley," replied Enya, placing the towels and bowl of hot water on the floor that Una brought her. "Why?"

"It's about time I've learned how to become one. I've spent far too long being an actor to ignore the basics of childbirth." Turning to Polly, he continued boldly, "Polly, I'm going to be helping you while your husband's out, so just do as I say and I'll tell you when to push. Think you can handle it?"

"O-Okay."

Enya beamed and patted her future nephew-in-law on the back. "That's the spirit, young man!"


	12. Chapter 11: Time's Running Out

Chapter 11: Time's Running Out

As soon as they entered the ship, Dash and Brain were waiting for them. Dash smirked and said, "Well, I never expected you here."

"I'm going to end this, Dash," replied Charles. "And make you stop that bomb."

"HA! Since you're all here...Brain and MAD Agents, take on Bert Jr. and the Mane Six!"

Both Dash and Charles went Super Shin Humans 14 and began to fight each other. Brain was fighting Bert Jr., as he kicked him, punched him, and threw him into the wall. He said, "There's no one to save you now, Bert Jr.! And now I'm going to finish you off."

A male rat came out with a whip. He whipped Alex III's sword out of his hand and began to grab him with the whip; he threw him into the wall, turned on the whip, and made electricity come out to shock him. Soon, all of the TFS were defeated.

"Yes! I win!" shouted Dash. "Your home base is mine! Now, I get to use it to accomplish my lifelong dream-TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD! That's something I'll bet my stupid twin brother of mine never did!"

Suddenly, something strange was happening to Brain. He writhed in agony, before standing still, his eyes glowing a bright white. He stomped over to Dash, grabbed him by his throat, and murmurred (in Procyon's ghostly voice), "You've ignored my warnings...you've disregarded my pleadings to stop the senseless massacre of my people...now you're going to suffer for all the wrong you are doing at this moment..."

"What's coming over you, Brain?" growled Dash. "You're supposed to help me take over the earth, not protect it!"

"Attempting to make every Canerican's lives miserable because of your brother's successes and your failures is a grave sin, Dash Roberts. What you should have done in the first place is accept his accomplishments with pride and let him allow you to do the same with a little guidance. But since you planned to deal with him your way, your soul deserves to go to the deepest bowels of the Underworld!"

Outside the space ship, a cluster of stars gathered around to form an image of a ticked-off Procyon, and he began to attack the ship, angry raccoon chatters echoing in the air. The ship shook with great intensity; though he was now scared, Dash refused to back down. He freed himself from Brain/Procyon and retorted, "Never! I'll never give up, no matter what you say! I'm doing this because I'm jealous of what Charles had been doing all of his life. He was the oldest by only three minutes, while I was the youngest; Mom and Dad loved him more than me, and always gave him the best things in life. He was always lucky with the ladies-I wasn't. He had a job-I didn't. And he was the best at all sports-and I WASN'T! Which is why I'm planning to exterminate him and his teammates, and then take over the world!"

He was about to press the button the accelerate the countdown on the Doomsday Bomb when his hand suddenly became crippled and he dropped the remote; with that, he screamed in pain. Brain/Procyon said, "See what happens when you don't listen to an angry guardian spirit? Unless you do exactly as I say, the rest of your body will end up being like your hand!"

"No! I still hate my brother!"

At his words, Dash's other hand became crippled. "This is your last chance. Apologize to Charles and accept your defeat, or you will be rendered paralyzed and helpless for the rest of your life!"

Dash groaned. He wanted to oppose him even further, but at the same time he didn't want to die at the paws of the angry guardian spirit. Finally, he sighed and said, "Fine! I'll give up. I'll apologize to Charles and accept my defeat, so there! Now, can you _please _get my hands back to normal?"

Brain/Procyon nodded solemnly and replied, "As you wish..."

Soon, Dash's hands were brought back to normal and the assault on his ship began to cease. Brain, after having been possesed by Procyon for a short amount of time, fell unconscious to the ground. Dash went over to help the TFS up and give them a quick apology. He said, "The reason I was like this is because I was sick and tired of being ignored all my life. Your successes overshadowed mine, Charles...and I'm really sorry for taking it out on you and your team."

"If you wanted to be like me, why didn't you say so?" replied Charles. "I was so busy enjoying myself being successful that I didn't know you even existed. But now that you say that you want to start over, I could teach you how to do all the things I did. I can help you get a job...I can help you get a woman...and best of all, I can help you reinvent yourself to be the best twin brother I've ever had."

"Thanks. I needed that."

Dash and Charles shook hands with each other and smiled, then they procceded to help Brain up and help him regain his memory. Andrew said, "Uh, guys, about the Doomsday Bomb..."

"I'm on it," replied Dash, picking up the remote that he had dropped earlier. "With this, I'll turn the bomb off before it could even explode."

"Sure, but please hurry! We've only got 25 seconds left!"

Meanwhile, back on Vulpes, Bert was having trouble trying to defuse the Doomsday Bomb. Ralph said, "Come on, Bert! You gotta cut the cord to prevent the bomb from blowing up!"

"I-I don't know," replied Bert nervously. "It only worked in the spy movies, but I'm not sure if the plan would work in real life as well."

"But you must! Now we have 15 seconds."

Bert nodded and tried to figure out which of the three cords to cut-the red one, the yellow one, and the blue one. Just as he was about to get to the red one, the clock on the bomb shut down and a female robotic voice intoned, "Countdown stopped. Timed self-destruction aborted."

The whole team heaved a sigh of relief, knowing that the bomb didn't explode. Then they looked up to see Dash's ship landing on the ground nearby, and they got out their laser guns and swords, half-expecting Dash and his MAD agents to come out and attack them. But there were no MAD agents and Dash was seen walking along peacefully with the team. Bert put up his laser gun and said, "Whew...you guys had us spooked there for a moment. What happened?"

"Dash surrendered," replied Charles. "And Brain got his memory back. So our mission is complete and Vulpes is safe."

"Your mission isn't considered complete just yet, Charles. You said you wanted to see your son if you made it out alive, remember?"

"Which reminds me. I gotta check on Moselle for a minute..."

Inside the stone cottage, Polly had given birth to a set of healthy twin girls, with Bentley's help; as for Moselle, she was halfway through with waiting for her son to arrive. Enya said, "One more push, my dear, and it's all over...now!"

Moselle nodded quickly and, gritting her teeth and gripping the sides of the blanket she sat up on, bore down with a pained groan. She stopped when she heard a lusty cry of an infant, as Enya held up a crying male raccoon kit with small dragon wings and set him gently on her stomach. "The third day of the ninth month of the third season in the Year of the Crow...and a healthy baby boy has arrived."

"Welcome to the world, Nathan Charles Roberts," whispered Moselle with a tearful smile, cuddling her newborn son.

Charles and Bert Jr. showed up in the cottage, just in time to see their wives and the babies. Enya, who had looked up from chewing off the kit's umbilical cord, noticed the boys and smiled. She said, "Mr. Roberts, your wife has brought forth a beautiful young lad. From those little wings of his, I can certainly tell he takes after your side of the family."

"More like Moselle's side of the family," replied Charles, admiring the baby. He was right-not only did Baby Nathan had small dragon wings, but he also took after his grandfather with bent ears and a bent nose. Enya chuckled, before going to the other side to attend to Polly's twins.

Moselle looked up at Charles and smiled at him, before giving him a kiss on the cheek. Vanessa was writing down the birth announcements she was going to put in the newspapers the minute she got back home, when Bentley went up to her. He asked, "You don't mind me marrying Una, do you?"

"Of course, I don't, Bentley," replied Vanessa. "You've been married to me for a long time, so I don't see anything wrong with you getting another wife. As long as she is good to you, it's all right with me. Say, what do you think of this? 'Charles and Moselle Roberts are happy to announce the birth of their son, Nathan Charles Roberts, born September 3, 3048'..."

"It looks good. But you also forgot the birth of Bert Jr. and Polly's twins."

"I'll write them later. In the meantime, we'd better prepare for yours and Una's wedding in a minute."


	13. Chapter 12: Meant To Be Together

Chapter 12: Meant To Be Together

Dash smiled upon the realization that he was now an uncle. As he watched his brother and his sister-in-law admiring their child, he thought about all the things he had done in his life-hating a sibling for his success rather than accepting those facts. However, when he got to meet four more of his sisters-in-law, as well as his other nephews and nieces, he felt that there was one thing that he was missing-he needed to raise a family of his own, just as soon as he finds the right woman at the right time.

Outside, Brain was outside looking up at the stars. For a long time, he planned what he was going to do with his life since he got his memory back, but at the same time he mourned the deaths of both his master and his best friend. And like Dash, he was also considering marriage, too.

Soon, everybody was gathered at the stone church for Bentley and Una's wedding. They watched as Una, radiant and resplendent in her wedding gown, walked towards to the altar where Bentley was. After the vows and rings were exchanged, Father Angus announced, "And now Bentley will recite a poem, which he claims he had written yesterday after having heard the news of his beloved's proposal."

Bentley nodded, before clearing his throat and beginning to recite his poem.

_When I look into your eyes, I see our future  
Our hearts combined into one  
Now that I'm with you I begin to reflect  
On all the times that have come and gone._

_Though time and space keep us apart  
We will find a way to get back together  
Through stormy winds and mighty blizzards  
We'll endure every kind of weather._

_No simple words can perfectly describe  
How I feel about being bathed in your love  
It's something that has inspired us throughout our lives  
A blessing, a gift from heaven above._

_We were meant to be together  
That's what we heard people say  
We will always be together  
And that's how it should stay._

Una smiled tenderly at hearing those words. Then Father Angus happily declared, "And now, by the power vested in me, you are officially husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride." From the moment Bentley and Una started to kiss, they became Mr. and Mrs. Raccoon.

The TFS headed back to Earth for a large reception in Evergreen. It was there that, while Savage Garden's "Truly, Madly, Deeply" played in the background, that Bentley and Una started their first dance as newlyweds. As they danced together, Bentley heard Procyon's disembodied voice call out to him in his mind.

"_Well done, young one_," he said. "_Despite all that had gone through during your visit to Vulpes, you have certainly proven yourself worthy of Una's love_."

Bentley replied, "Thanks, Procyon. I was hoping you'd stay and protect us from any future dangers heading our way."

"_That won't be so. I predict that there will be yet another enemy who claims to be stronger than I; a deranged spirit of a clown who died in a circus accident back in the pre-Canerica years, this enemy will strike by casting a curse all over the empire, causing anyone affected by it to die laughing. I intend to stay out of it by remaining dormant until this danger has passed-however, if you feel any need to call on me for assistance, I have taken the liberty to provide every team member with talismans bearing my image_."

When Bentley looked down, he noticed that he was now wearing a gold medal, with an image of a glowing wild raccoon on it. He then looked around to notice that his family and friends wore the same thing. Procyon continued, "_Your spirit will be my spirit. Think of me, and I will be there_."

Bentley nodded. With this promise, the TFS wouldn't have anything to worry about...for now, that is.

THE END!


End file.
